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Action against 300 officers recommended
January 28, 2011
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has recommended a stern action against 300 officials, including the employees of the board and personnel of Levies Force, after completing a probe into the missing Nato oil tankers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the last three years.
Sources in the board informed Pulse that around 3,000 ISAF oil tankers went missing from KP during the last couple of years for which a committee had been constituted to conduct an inquiry into the matter and expose the elements involved in the mysterious disappearance of oil tankers. The probing body recorded the statements of security officials at Torkham border, personnel of levies force deployed at Peshawar Dry Port, Azakhel Dry Port and customs officials at Cantt Railway Station. Sources also quoted the investigation report as saying that over 8,000 Nato oil tankers had gone missing from various parts of the country so far since 2008, adding that besides oil tankers around 11,000 Nato containers went missing during the same period
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The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has recommended a stern action against 300 officials, including the employees of the board and personnel of Levies Force, after completing a probe into the missing Nato oil tankers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the last three years.
Sources in the board informed Pulse that around 3,000 ISAF oil tankers went missing from KP during the last couple of years for which a committee had been constituted to conduct an inquiry into the matter and expose the elements involved in the mysterious disappearance of oil tankers.
The probing body recorded the statements of security officials at Torkham border, personnel of levies force deployed at Peshawar Dry Port, Azakhel Dry Port and customs officials at Cantt Railway Station. Sources also quoted the investigation report as saying that over 8,000 Nato oil tankers had gone missing from various parts of the country so far since 2008, adding that besides oil tankers around 11,000 Nato containers went missing during the same period. They further said that the report would be sent to the federal government for initiating an action against the responsible officials.
It merits a mention here that the law-enforcement agencies, during various raids on godowns in the capital city and parts of Khyber Agency in the recent past, had recovered millions of rupees worth of goods meant for Nato forces in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, Ministry for States and Frontier Regions (Safron) and the UN refugee agency UNHCR, last week announced the formation of six subcommittees for the pragmatic implementation of Government of Pakistan's Strategy for the Management of Afghans in Pakistan that was endorsed by the cabinet on March 24, 2010.
The multidimensional strategy for the management and repatriation of Afghans in Pakistan includes extending the validity of Proof of Registration (PoR) cards for Afghans until the end of 2012 and extending the Tripartite Commission Agreement among UNHCR, Pakistan and Afghanistan for another three years to guarantee and maintain the voluntary nature of the ongoing repatriation of Afghans in line with the security situation and capacity of Afghanistan to absorb returning refugees.
Other components of the strategy include arrangements for some of the unregistered members of registered Afghan families, a visa regime to manage the stay of Afghan businessmen, students and other categories. Families headed by women in the absence of a male breadwinner will be allowed to stay.
The decision about the formation of subcommittees was taken on Dec 2 last year in the second meeting of the federal committee aimed at looking over the implementation of the border management strategy and report to the federal body.
The six subcommittees formed are i) Repatriation and reintegration, ii) Visa and legal residence consideration, iii) Border management and exit/entry regime, iv) Protection and third country resettlement, v) Bilateral/trilateral consultations and vi) the Development of refugee affected areas.
The composition of the said bodies will be decided by the respective home secretaries at the provincial level in consultation with Safron to collaborate with the line departments concerned for implementation of the strategy of Afghans repatriation.
"The move will pave the way for implementation of the Afghan Management and Repatriation Strategy which will lead to comprehensive and sustainable solutions for Afghans in Pakistan" said the UNHCR Representative in Pakistan Mengesha Kebede.
Kebede added, "Our admiration deepens when we see Pakistan committed to supporting Afghans despite that the country itself has been going through some very difficult times because of the floods and conflicts."
UNHCR official assured the government that the agency is committed to supporting the governments and people of Pakistan to find permanent solutions to the Afghan refugees' issue.
Imran Zeb, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Safron, welcomed the UNHCR's support towards implementation of the strategy and expressed the government's earnest desire to embark on identifying workable solutions for Afghans in Pakistan.
Similarly, Fida Wazir, Chief Commissioner for Afghan Refugees in Pakistan, stated that the sub-committees will work closely with the other departments towards making concerted efforts for realization of various types of solutions stipulated in the government's repatriation strategy.
Presently, some 1.6 million Afghan refugees are residing in various parts of the country while 3.6 million Afghans have returned home so far with the help of UN agency since 2002.
On the other, the fresh wave of terrorism in the province has put the future of around 3.6 million students of government schools at stake, according to a report of Education Department, published by local newspapers. The state-run schools remain the main target of the miscreants in fresh strings of terrorism incidents in the province, report added. It further said that more than 350 public sector schools were affected in terrorism acts in the province putting the future of thousands of students in jeopardy. Insurgents have been targeting schools in Peshawar, Swat, Bajaur, Malakand and Khyber agency and are not sparing any opportunity to hit schools especially government educational institutes.
The security guards deployed at government schools are not properly trained and equipped to counter terrorist attacks, the report observed, adding that the rising incidents of terrorism have increased the need for initiating such trainings for the security staff.
It is worth mentioning here that at least 20 schools, most of them for girls, were blown up alone in the provincial metropolis in the year 2010. Though government claims to have taken steps for protecting the educational institutions, it has failed to prove the claim.
No doubt, the subversive activities in urban areas have decreased compared to the previous year but it seems that militants have focused on destruction of educational institutions. While, fulfilling a long-standing demand of the people of Malakand division, Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Amir Haider Khan Hoti inaugurated Darul Quza in Malakand Division last week.
"Formal establishment of Darul Quza is a historical moment for the people of Malakand division and this credit goes to the leaders of all political and religious parties, the judiciary, lawyers and people of Malakand division in particular," Hoti said while addressing a gathering on the occasion.
The chief minister said when Swat was a state, its people had opportunities of development, peace and justice but new problems arose after it merged with Pakistan. The terrorists took advantage of space in the justice system and change the region into a fireball.
"Today we are able to fulfill our pledges of inexpensive and speedy justice with the people of Malakand Division. All political and religious parties of the province assisted us in this endeavor. "The credit for this whole success goes to the people of Malakand who have rendered enormous sacrifices for Islamic system," he said.
He said there is no space for terrorists in Islam and humanity. "We are thankful to Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and former Chief Justice Peshawar High Court Justice Tariq Pervez for their cooperation and guidance to reach this destiny which was otherwise not possible," he said.
"We have ensured fast, quick and inexpensive justice and crushed terrorists and their evil designs and established Darul Quza, finally. The chief minister said the reconstruction process has commenced in the district and work on 30 schools are underway with the assistance from America while work on 20 other schools will start in the next 10 days.
Regarding delay in compensation process to flood victims of the district, the chief minister said Rs 6.5 billion is required for this purpose and only Rs2 billion has been received from the federal government which had already been spent on compensation process, while the remaining Rs 4.5 billion will soon be transferred to the provincial government which will accelerate the compensation process, he maintained.
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